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Broadway is the most recognized theatre term in English-speaking North America. Rightly or wrongly, it has come to stand for the pinnacle of professional theatre in the United States and Canada. Those dedicated to theatre want to see shows on Broadway, and even those not so dedicated want to see touring shows from there. Actors, designers, directors, playwrights, producers, stage managers, and indeed anyone in professional theatre considers involvement in a Broadway show to be the high point of their careers. Seeing a Broadway show is a must for numerous visitors to the city and for many native New Yorkers as well.1 For years, the majority of Broadway shows have originated at theatres far from this famous theatre district, indicating that outstanding professional theatre is done in many places. But it is the Broadway production that counts most in people's imaginations.
The term Broadway refers to a section of the New York City borough of Manhattan, the smallest and oldest of the five boroughs that have made up the city since 1898. From its colonization by the Dutch as New Amsterdam in 1624, through its transfer to the English as New York in 1664, and its adoption as the capital of the United States from 1785-1790, the south end of Manhattan Island was developing into the largest city in English-speaking North America. By 1811, the city's rapid expansion up the length of the island caused it to adopt a grid system for new roads north of what is now Houston Street, the roads south being too well established for the grid to be applied there. The grid ignored geography, assuming hills would be cut down to fill in valleys, ponds, and wetlands. Eventually this was done throughout the island except in the area later designated for Central Park. This grid starts two miles from the southern tip of the island and two blocks east of what is now the Sara D. Roosevelt Park, at the intersection of 1st Street and First Avenue. From this intersection, twelve avenues run north-south. First Avenue runs along the island's east side and avenue numbers increase as one travels west. Streets cross avenues at 90-degree angles, roughly east-west. Street numbers increase as one travels north, ending at 220th Street on...